Targets are Acquired
by rbavenger
Summary: Three vengeful individuals are trying to take down the Avengers due to the death of their loved ones. Robert Hall, a friend of the Avengers and liaison with the Government is attempting to get a treaty between earth and Asgard; but for that to happen, a certain reformed prince needs his name cleared.. I Found a New Beta, I will post new verisons of the chapters
1. Chapter 1 Matt

Chapter One

 **I only own Agent Robert Hall, Matt, Frank, and Cindy.**

 **Culver University**

 **Willowdale, West Virginia**

 **June 2, 2011**

As Matt Jenkins got out of his car, he thought about his younger brother, Henry, who he hadn't seen in two years. He was looking forward to finally getting to see him again, as they had always gotten along really well. The numerous laboratories in his department worked alongside the military; his lab specifically was developing multiple new alloys for the government. This often meant that he was too busy to visit his family, which is why he was excited to take a break from work.

As he walked across the parking lot of Henry's college on the hot June day, he noticed that the campus wasn't that busy. It wasn't overly surprising; most of the students had already left for summer break. However, that wasn't the case for Henry.

Henry had decided to take a few summer speed courses which would enable him to get his degree a year early. Matt had made a deal with Henry before had gone off to college: if Henry could prove himself while getting his degree, Matt would get him a job at his work.

Matt was here to pick up his brother and take him out to lunch and check up on his progress. As he headed to the courtyard, which had been arranged as the meeting stop, he was surprised when a bunch of armed troops suddenly ran by him, heading in the same direction he was. The sound of their boots pounding on the ground as they went past increased Matt's immediate concern and confusion as to what was going on, confused and frightened him. Why were troops with machine guns and grenades on a college campus? He was used to those weapons at his work- which was a secure area and required special protection- but this was a public campus.

He instantly knew that something wasn't right and broke out into a run after the troops. The roar of an engine behind him alerted him to military Humvees with mounted turrets coming his way. Seeing the massive vehicles sent his heart into overdrive. What the hell was going on? He continued to follow the courtyard and came to a stop at the glass walkway, where all the troops had all gathered.

As he was standing there, he overheard the chatter on the radio. "Banner's running in the library."

"He's in the glass walkway!" one of the soldiers shouted.

Matt looked up and saw a man wearing a blue shirt in the walkway, looking around wildly. He searched for his brother, but Henry was nowhere in sight.

"Fire the tear gas!" another soldier yelled as most of the soldiers aimed their weapons at the glass. _Thump, thump, thump._ Matt was sure that the amount of smoke they had pumped into the bridge would kill a man. He didn't know how wrong he was.

"Matt, what's going on?!" somebody shouted to him, making him jump a little in fright. He turned and realised it was Henry; he must have come out of a door. The younger Jenkins raised his hands, as if to ask, _'what the hell is going on?'_

Matt looked up at the smoke-enclosed area, finding the figure of the man gone. In its place was the outline of someone–or something–larger and bulkier. Henry started to jog away from the building, making his way to his big brother.

Suddenly, the glass and metal exploded outwards, and Matt saw the most terrifying thing in his entire life. Out of the explosion came a giant, green, angry, muscular monster. It jumped down to the ground and as it landed, it shook the earth beneath their feet.

When Matt recovered, he immediately began to look around wildly for his brother. "Henry!" he called, trying to locate him. i _'Where are you_ _,_ _Henry?/i_ ' he thought, concerned.

The monster roared, and it sounded like a hundred jets taking off. There was anger in its roar, scaring Matt to his bones. It started to walk towards the troops, and they opened fire on it; hundreds of bullets bounced off its skin like they were nothing more than annoying flies. The hits were only aggravating the monster.

When Matt knew it was safe to look for his brother again, he looked around and spotted him on the ground; he ran to his little brother's side. As he got closer, he grew more and more concerned by the amount of blood surrounding him. "No!" he screamed, not caring if his voice drew attention. All he cared about was his brother. He saw that most of the blood was coming from Henry's head, and cried out when he saw there was a rock by his head with blood painted on its side. Matt couldn't hold back the tears. He knelt down and rolled the younger man on his back, supporting his limp head; he was unresponsive. "No. _No!_ You can't die, Henry!" he screamed.

He looked up for help. "HELP! SOMEBODY, PLEASE HELP ME!" he shouted, but nobody paid him any attention. They were either running away from the danger or involved with battling the monster, which was destroying the Humvees like they were little plastic toys. Realizing there was no hope, Matt bundled his brother into his arms, sobbing over the body. He cried out to the Lord who, in his eyes, had failed him.

He didn't loosen his grip on his brother as he looked up to notice the army losing to the monster. Anger swept over him- that ithing/i killed his brother!- and screamed, "Die! Die, you fucking monster! Just fucking die!"

A massive explosion made him jump and hold onto his brother tighter for protection. A small, sad smile made his way to his lips. The monster could not be seen. "Henry, they killed it! They fucking got him!" The joy was short lived, however, because the smoke cleared and revealed that the monster was very much alive, and holding onto a woman. It immediately fled the scene.

Matt watched its escape with burning anger, unable to do anything. i' _One day, I will find you, and you will pay for what happened to my brother_ ,'/i he bitterly thought.

 **June 9th, 2011**

 **A Cemetery in Virginia**

The funeral was beautiful-It was funny how those two words fit together. Henry was laid to rest besides his parent's graves, who had died a few years earlier due to a drunk driver.

Matt was joined by his cousins, Frank and Cindy. The three of them remained after the service to talk. "Frank, thank you so very much for coming, I know you are going through your own hell." He scoffed bitterly. "You should have seen it. It was..." He paused, overflowing with horrifying memories, " _iEvil_./i"

"Have you been able to find anything out at work with your clearance?" Cindy questioned.

"No," Matt answered with a sigh. "They ordered me to stop poking around and to just let it go."

"Don't lose your job over this," Frank spoke up, concern laced in his voice. "I know you want revenge; we all do. But… I mean, what the fuck is our world coming to, monsters and robots?"

"I want someone to give us a straight answer," Matt commented, ignoring what Frank just said. He didn't want to listen about not getting revenge.

"Things will eventually work out," Cindy said reassuringly, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You know we're always here for you."

Frank nodded. "Yeah, you know we love you." He paused and glanced at his watch before continuing, "I have to go back home. There are a few minor plans I have to finish."

"I know. I love you all," Matt said, smiling tightly. "I will see you in a couple of days."

Frank and Cindy left, leaving Matt alone in front of his only brother's grave. When the sun set and the air grew cold, he decided it was time to go home. He knelt down next to the tombstone one last time for that day. "I love you, Henry. God willing, I will find that monster and kill it." He looked towards the sunset. "Banner… I'll never forget the name."

As the sun set and he he walked back to his car, he was no longer crying, although his eyes were still puffy.

He had a new purpose in life.


	2. Chapter 2 Frank

Chapter Two

 **Puente Antiguo, New Mexico**

 **June 2, 2011**

Frank and Mary Williams were siblings, although there was an eight year gap between the two. He worked for Dona Ana Munitions in Las Cruces, on the border of Mexico, and had left home a long time ago. At that stage, Mary had never even thought about it. She'd worked at the local 7-11 since she was a teenager.

Frank had arrived late the previous night and he'd been hoping to spend some quality time with her, so the next morning he went to her job so that they could catch up. She was telling him about the new guy in town, the one that hung around the crazy scientists.

Mary continued to talk to Frank passionately. "You should have seen this guy. He is so cute and loud, and I think he's British."

"Sure, Mary, British people always come to New Mexico. I bet it was on his bucket list," he teased her sarcastically.

"Frank, you are such an asshole," she answered casually. "So, what's new at work? You said something last night about some new bullet?"

"Yeah, we're working on a new bullet for a sniper rifle that's faster than what's out there now." Frank expected praise or surprise, but to his dismay, his sister was looking distractedly out the window with a confused expression on her face. He followed her gaze, nose scrunching up.

"What the hell? Look at those freaks. Where did they come from?" Mary exclaimed, seeing strangely dressed people cross in front of the store window.

"Eh, maybe they are going to the Renaissance Fair and they're lost. Maybe they forgot to make a left turn at Albuquerque," Frank suggested randomly, always making a joke. His sister just rolled her eyes.

They both watched who looked like three strange looking people with swords and shields walk by before looking rejoiced at obviously bumping into somebody they knew.

"Oh, that's him in the blue shirt. See, he's so cute!" Mary squealed.

Frank chuckled at his sister's usual antics. "Who's the girl that's hanging off of him?"

"That's one of the nerds. I am _so_ going to kick her ass. She's trying to take my man."

Although Frank knew she wasn't being serious, he couldn't help but struggle not to laugh. "Yeah, okay. It's amazing that you can say that with a straight face." Frank paused for a moment. "Hey, I'm going to head back to the house and take a shower."

"Yeah, you smell. I'm going to go in the back and stock up. I'll be out of here in about two hours."

Frank had no idea that those would be the last words that he would hear from his beloved baby sister.

* * *

Frank walked the two blocks to Mary's house and took a shower, enjoying himself thoroughly after such a long trip. When he came out, he grabbed the white fluffy towel off the shelf to dry himself off before starting to get dressed. A few minutes later, he heard a loud commotion outside and poked his head out the window. People were yelling and screaming, pointing down the street. As Frank turned his head, he saw it: a giant silver thing of nightmares a block from his current location, heading towards him. Then, its head opened up and a beam of fire shot out, blowing up a car.

Frank jumped back, grabbing his remaining clothes and throwing them on as fast as he possibly could before making his way out of the bathroom. He grabbed a double barrel shotgun on his way out of the house, wanting to get to Mary and make sure she was okay. The monster was closer to her location than his. To his horror, he saw the monster turn its head towards the gas station. It felt like he was watching in slow motion as the face opened up once more and fired in his sister's direction.

"No!" he screamed as the fire came out and blew the place sky high. As he got closer, it was abundantly clear that the gas station had been a direct hit. He tried to keep calm, but the tears began slipping down his face the closer to the station he got.

"Mary! Mary, where are you? Mary!" He kept screaming in an attempt to find her, but it was no use. The flames were too hot and he couldn't get any closer. He looked around frantically. What was the time? Had she already left the station? She could be okay. Maybe she got out before the building exploded. i' _God, please let her be okay,'/i_ he thought hopefully. But then something caught his eye.

He found her laying on the ground, face down. She wasn't moving and when he crouched down beside her, he discovered she wasn't breathing either. Her skin was covered in red sores and blood; she was burnt on the majority of her body, ruining the once innocent body of his baby sister. He couldn't stop the tears that began falling down his cheeks as he sat there.

As he tried to compose himself, he noticed a blond-haired jackass approaching the monster. Seeing how the man approached the monster made him have the suspicions that it was his fault the monster was attacking them. His sister was dead because of that man; she only saw the good in him, but he was trouble. Frank grew bitter and angry, then turned his head back towards his precious sister.

Suddenly, he heard people screaming. When he turned back around to see what was happening, he saw the blond man flying through the air, and the scientist was running to his side. There was a blinding light and the blond was back up, but he had somehow changed into armor and was holding a large hammer.

The man charged the monster with absolute determination. Within seconds, a tornado formed in the town as the fight between the two continued. Frank couldn't see, but held onto his sister in some attempt to keep her safe. The tornado slowly stopped to reveal the monster laying on the ground, defeated.

 _i'So he killed it,'/i_ Frank thought bitterly, but it was after the blond armored man. If he wasn't here, that thing never would have come and Mary would still be alive. Everyone was treating him like a hero. What the fuck? Mary was dead. Someone had to pay, and it was going to be the blond-haired man.

Frank looked down at the shotgun. i' _That would work_ ,' _/i_ he thought. But before he had chance to pick it up, black SUVs started coming from every direction and men in black suits hopped out of the cars.

 _i'Figures. The goddamn government is going to cover it up,_ '/i he thought. Frank looked down at his sister, feeling weak and helpless. He was overflowing with emotion as he held his sister in his arms and cried.

 **June 11, 2011**

 **Cemetery in Galisteo, New Mexico**

Frank was exhausted as he stood over her grave, his eyes closed for a few moments as he tried to remember his sisters laugh, but he couldn't get the image of her burnt body out of his mind. He was glad that Cindy, Matt, and Mike had come out. He was extremely shocked to find out that Henry had died on the very same day as Mary.

"What the hell is the world coming to?" Frank asked rhetorically.

"I know, right? I don't get it. what's the problem with our family?" Matt answered as the two sat on a bench by themselves.

"You haven't been able to find anything out?" Frank asked him, knowing Matt was having a hard time coping without any answers.

"Nope. I had my job threatened twice, so I backed off. All I know is that some guy named Banner is involved." Matt looked up. "What about you?"

"Something about Thor. He's from another planet; apparently some alien. I heard it on the radio, so I don't know how true it is."

"I want the bastard dead," Matt almost growled.

Frank nodded in agreement instantly. It was like Matt could read his mind right now. He couldn't believe that nobody was condemning the real people that killed his sister or Henry. "You and me both. So, what happens now? Obviously, the government is covering it up."

"I don't know," Matt replied before pausing. "Wait a minute, you said that you've been working on a new bullet for a sniper, right?"

"Yeah," Frank confirmed, confused as to why he wanted to talk about work.

Matt's face turned serious as he leaned in slightly. "What I am about to tell you is very classified," he warned. "I have been working on a new alloy. It's supposed to be lighter and stronger than any metal on earth. It is a silicon-carbide vibranium alloy. Do you think you could make a bullet head out of it?"

"Yeah, I think so. We're working on a new bullet for the Barrett M82 50 cal. version M107. The bullet is a Raufoss Mk 211 high explosive round. It is faster and more powerful than anything the military has," Frank replied, the cogs in his head turning as he worked out what Matt was thinking.

"You know that once we start this, there's no turning back, right?"

"I know, but someone has to pay," Frank replied, He was not going to let his sister die without justice, and if the officials weren't going to do it through legal channels, then he'd do it any way he can.

"Hey, guys, there you are," Cindy said as she approached them with her brother Mike, shaking them out of their conversation.

"We have been looking all over for you, too," Mike added.

The two men were still sitting on the bench. They knew that they would sleep on the ide, in their hotel rooms for the night and then touch base tomorrow. Although, they both knew that the other would be committed to avenging their loved ones.


	3. Chapter 3 Cindy

Chapter Three

 **New York City**

 **May 4th, 2012**

Cindy Allen was always smart with money; she knew how to make it work. In fact, it was to the point that she could almost be considered psychic. That attracted a lot of important clients, and she made them a lot of money. Because of this, she was very wealthy.

She served clients with very long histories; histories that others didn't dare mention. They had very deep political ties that served as extra protection. These were the type of people that the F.B.I. couldn't touch. These were the type of people that made the Italian mafia nervous. These were Cindy's best clients, and she did not disappoint. She wouldn't because, after all, she wanted to live.

It was a nice day in May. Cindy was in her office, making amazing trades as usual.

"We're under attack!" she heard someone yell out at the same time that a string of explosions went off. She turned and peered out of the window, seeing blue beams hitting cars and buses. Then she saw the Avengers-well, glimpses of them. Cindy reacted in the same way which she noted everybody else was: hiding, praying, and hoping the superheroes and military would protect them.

From her place under her desk, she saw a giant green thing and a man with blonde hair fighting on top of a large white flying monster, attacking aliens. That wasn't something she saw every day, not that she understand exactly what was happening. When the flying monster crashed into Grand Central Station, there was a chorus of cheers.

Cindy noticed another man on one of the flying things. He had on a weird-looking helmet and an evil smile; the type of smile that dropped a stone of dread into your stomach and made you curl into yourself for protection. She looked into his eyes for a second and all she could see was hatred. It was heavy, thick, deep... an abyss with no end, and it scared her more than anything else ever had or would. Cindy honestly wondered how one man could have so much evil in him.

Then, she remembered herself as a child, going to church and hearing about the antichrist, and feeling scared of one man. ' _Is this a sign of the end?'_ Cindy wondered. He flew past her and began to fire at cars and buses, making them explode instantly. ' _My God_ ,' she thought. ' _All those lives lost. Wait...'_ Cindy remembered something with an intense feeling of fear, ' _Wasn't Mike supposed to come meet me for lunch?_ '

She quickly dialed her cell phone, almost panicking, but the network was down, or overloaded, or something. That didn't deter her and she kept trying and trying, until finally, it went through. It was ringing.

 _Ring._

 _Ring._

"Cindy! Thank God you called. Are you safe?" The relief in her brother's voice was astounding, and almost outweighed her own.

"Yes! Mike, where are you?" she cried.

"I'm somewhere with a bunch of other people. There are some police officers helping us. What the fuck is going on?"

"Well, I think we aren't the only people in the universe," she breathed, finally saying what she had feared.

"No shit, Cindy. Always the smart-ass." Mike wasn't so amazed and scared at the revelation.

 _Boom!_

"What was that?" Cindy yelled.

"That was one of those things that the aliens are flying! One just crashed in front of the store we're in. Oh, shit, they're still alive!" Cindy could almost feel the fear in his voice.

"Mike, get out of there!" She could hear the sound of running footsteps, and then it was quiet. She heard a door handle being twisted, but then Mike told her that it was locked and he could not get out. Cindy held the phone tightly, hoping for a miracle.

"Cindy, they see us. There's nowhere to go. The cops are firing their guns. They got both of them. Wait, shit, they threw something!"

 _Clink._

 _Clink._

"Cindy! I lov…"

"Mike!" she screamed as the tears began flowing down her face and her lips shook in fear. There was no answer from Mike. The line had cut off during the explosion. "MIKE!" Cindy released her phone, letting it drop to the ground with a thud. What had happened? Was her brother alive? It was unlikely. She felt an overwhelming dread- she just _knew_ he was dead.

"Oh my God. There's Iron Man! What the hell? Holy shit, there's a missile on his back!" she heard someone exclaim, pulling her from her thoughts.

"He's going straight up into the portal!" someone else exclaimed.

Just then, the glass shattered as some aliens came through. The shards cut at Cindy's skin as she turned towards the noise. They raised their weapons. Everyone froze, sure that they were going to die.

Cindy simply thought, ' _Well, at least I'll be with Mike._ '

Then, suddenly, they all just fell to the floor like rag-dolls. Nobody moved, paralyzed by fear like she was.

"Look, the portal's closing! The heroes won! We're saved!" Shouts of glee and relief echoed around Cindy as people began to stand up.

Cindy was a little happy. After all, she hadn't wanted to die, and was glad she'd been rescued. Even so, the thought of Mike and all the other fallen loved ones crossed her mind. Hopefully, they got that evil bastard.

' _I hope he rots in hell_ ,' she thought.

* * *

 ****

 ** **New York City Marble Cemetery****

 ** **May 6th, 2012****

Cindy stood alone. Matt and Frank weren't able to come. There were no answers provided by the government to the people. Why had this happened? Who was that evil man? Who were the people in the strange ships? What was being done to help the families bury their loved ones?

Cindy just cried; sobbed. It started to gently rain, which made her hurt more, because Mike loved the rain. When they were kids, they would go out together and jump in puddles and scream out in unending joy. He was gone now. She didn't notice when it began to rain harder.

She knelt down and put her hand on the stone. "I love you, Mike. I always will, and I promise you this: if I ever find that bastard, he'll end up dead."

She eventually stood up, giving the headstone another glance before slowly walking out of the cemetery. She was already soaked and didn't care as the rain grew stronger.


	4. Chapter 4 hi Agent Hall

Chapter Four

 **Avenger's Tower**

 **May 5, 2013**

In a darkened room, a figure snored, sleeping deeply; it was the perfect picture of utter peace. Suddenly, the rest was interrupted as a Megadeth song blasted through the room. It played for a few seconds, but then began to fade. The man started to move, rubbing his eyes.

"Jarvis, was that really necessary? I'm pretty sure you don't wake up any of the other Avengers that way."

" _In fact, Agent Hall. I use this same method with Sir, as it's the only thing that will actually wake him up. However, he prefers AC/DC."_

"Whatever," the man grumbled in annoyance, ruffling a hand through his messy hair. "Alright, what's happening? Why'd you wake me?"

 _"According to some emails I've perused, the White House will be calling you today_. _I assumed that you'd like to be awake and ready for their call."_

"Oh, joy," Robert said flatly. He was not looking forward to that. "That's just great. I can't wait to see what stupidness this is going to be." He paused, dropping the sarcastic tone for a moment. "Got any ideas what it's going to be about?"

 _"No, Agent Hall. The emails were not specific in that regard."_

 _"_ Oh wonderful, I love surprises."

 _"Your sarcasm is noted_ , _Agent Hall."_

With that, Robert got out of bed, took a shower, and got dressed in a simple shirt and a pair of jeans. He made his way upstairs, noticing that Clint, Bruce, Loki and Tony were already gathered, probably for exercise or target practice. By the way they were all relaxed, you wouldn't immediately realise they they had just won a fight against Dr. Doom when he sent his doombots out. However, the dark circles under their eyes and lack of sleep on their faces gave an indication.

"Morning there, sunshine," Barton greeted with a hint of a smirk playing on his lips.

"The dead have finally risen," Banner added.

"Fuck off, Barton and Dr. Banner, It looks like Tony's personality is finally rubbing off on you," Hall answered as he poured some coffee into his Stitch mug.

"We're all honored that you've decided to bless us with your glorious presence," Loki commented, joining in on the teasing.

"Don't get snippy with me," Robert shot back at Loki. He hadn't had enough sleep. "It's not my fault you froze the police cars _and_ Natasha last night."

"Well if Iron-Klutz had been watching where he was flying, he wouldn't have hit me," Loki defended, glaring at him.

Tony looked like he was about to fire back, but Robert got his words in first. It was too goddamn early for this crap. "Okay, whatever, save it for the afternoon meeting," he grumbled before taking a breath and continuing. "Anyways, the reason I am up at this ridiculous hour is because Jarvis intercepted some emails concerning me. The White House is probably going to call today. He thought it would be best for me to be awake beforehand. Just remind me to tell Fury when he gets here if they haven't called by then, because you know that's when they'll call. And no, I do not have the slightest idea what they want."

The rest of the morning went by with a nice breakfast and civilised conversation.

Natasha finally turned up and joined everybody in the early afternoon Nobody brought up the fact that she had slept in late. Robert wasn't sure if it was because she had been accidentally frozen by Loki the previous night or because they just generally feared her reaction if any of them brought it up.

Robert thought back to what happened immediately after Natasha had been frozen Tony and Clint had attempted to defrost her with Thor's help and Robert had to stop them from melting her They knew she'd had to be thawed a little slower, but were acting on emotions. With Jarvis' advice, they'd been able to get her out of the ice cube before she had suffocated. She had thankfully suffered no side effects, but it drained her. Luckily, she wasn't mad. She knew it had been accident and didn't blame Loki. Regardless, Loki was very cautious in going near her now, wary of any retaliation.

Steve, on the other hand, did not deal with the freezing incident that well. He had a few PTSD flashbacks from when he crashed into the ice and lost 70 years of his life. He was still trying to work through those issues. Pepper, Betty and Robert all worked together to help him once they got back to the tower.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts. He needed to focus on today. Robert focused on work and found himself a few hours later working with Jarvis on the team's mission. He heard a knock on the door, and as he looked up he noticed who it was and waved him him.

"Hey, Thor. What's up? Everything okay? You've been quiet today."

"Yes, Hall, everything is fine. Or I believe it is, however… I am concerned about what might happen to my brother due to what happened last night."

"Oh, that. I wouldn't worry about it," Robert replied instantly, reassuring the gentle giant. "It is hard to control what happens on a battlefield. Things like this are bound to happen; you know that. Nobody was injured and I don't think Natasha holds a grudge against him. The worst I can see her doing is probably a good prank, but nothing more."

"Thank you, Hall. Your words give me comfort. I overheard you this morning, about this White House. Can you explain this to me?" Thor asked him earnestly.

Robert rubbed his a little and then started to explain as simply as possible the executive branch of the government. Thankfully Thor seemed to

"Well, you have to be a registered citizen of this country, over the age of eighteen, and have no felonies, the latter is more complicated," Robert informed him.

"So that means _I_ will be allowed to vote, correct?"

Robert thought for a second, wanting to provide the correct answer. "That's right. You and Loki are citizens of this country, so yes, you're allowed to vote." Robert remembered that when he first met the two demigods, the government gave them citizenship.

"Ah, that is wonderful. I look forward to this glorious election event!" And with that, he left the room, leaving Robert just shaking his head.

"Why do I have a horrible feeling that this is going to end in disaster somehow?" he muttered to himself.

* * *

Later in the day, Fury and Hill showed up at the tower to go over the mission and other essential things. Fury knew about the White House's call from his extensive intel, So it was not a surprise when Robert's phone went off during a childish argument between Tony, Clint, and Fury. Robert slammed his hand on the table before he answered it, which silenced everybody.

"Hello. Speaking… Very well thank you, and yourself?… Yes, they are all present… Um, yes including Directors Fury and Hill… Really… Wow… Well, I guess if he says to come for dinner… Eight o'clock tonight, got it. Who's going to be there?... No shit… Okay then, well, we shall not disappoint… Have a nice day… Yes, goodbye."

As he hung up the phone, he rose from his chair and cracked his neck to the right. He glanced around the room and noticed that everyone was looking at him, obviously interested and curious.

"Well, that was the Chief of Staff. We are all invited- well, more like _ordered-_ \- to be there tonight at eight P.M. We will have dinner with the President, Secretary of State, and the Secretary-General of the United Nations, along with the leaders of Mexico and Canada." As he finished speaking, pretty much everyone- with the exception Loki and Thor- was shocked. These were elites. Sure, Tony was used to dealing with the elite, but he hadn't even met the Secretary-General.

"I'm going to guess that they didn't tell you why?" Bruce asked hopefully.

"Nope. They didn't even drop a hint. I'm pretty sure it won't be that bad, especially considering they would have the top two people of the government in the same building," Robert replied.

"Well, I guess we should all get ready. Are we allowed to take plus ones with us?" Tony asked.

"Oh yes, we're allowed that as well," Robert answered while looking at Maria. They'd been taking things slow, but do always enjoy each other's company.

Maria turned her head and blushed a little. They hadn't gone a date in two weeks. The meeting came to a casual end and they all left to go and get ready.

* * *

 _ **Loki's POV.**_

Loki went into his apartment and closed the door. He felt intrigued about this dinner. He was curious to see how the leaders of this planet worked. His thoughts drifted onto a certain woman that he had been spending a lot of time with lately. Right on cue, he heard a knock on his door.

He waved his wrist a little and the door magically opened, and what burst in his room was a bubbly, happy, excited-about-political-science Darcy Lewis. "LOKI! Can you believe it? The White House! Isn't that awesome!"

"Well, I guess. I haven't decided to go or not. I am not one to be told what to do," he replied with disdain.

"Oh, really... Yeah, you don't like that, do you," Darcy responded, her mood deflated slightly.

"No, and do you know what I hate even more?" Loki asked leadingly, his face turned mean.

"Happy people?" she questioned as she took a step back, playfully concerned.

"No: disappointing my Lady," Loki stated, offering her a smile. "So yes, we are going."

"You fucking jackass! Okay, you got me good," she laughed as she leaned forward and hugged him.

* * *

Later that night, a Stark Industries's jet flew towards DC: Jane and Darcy were excited; Robert was asking Natasha and Clint not to please have weapons on them a because he didn't feel like filling out the paperwork. Pepper and Betty were reminding Tony and Bruce to behave and not hack into networks; Loki and Thor were asking Steve and Fury questions about the environment of the United States government; Maria was smiling at Robert who was sitting next to her, the two of them engaged in small talk; and finally, Steve was as excited as anyone- he was hoping to meet the President.

They finally landed at the airport and the excited team the luxury jet. There were three limos with armed Secret Service, police, and F.B.I. agents all waiting. Loki, Thor, and Bruce immediately became concerned. Robert quickly explained that they were simply security procedures; however, Thor and Loki didn't really understand- they could defend themselves.

"Okay, allow me to explain it in a different way." He started over, explaining more simply. "You two are foreign diplomats in the US, therefore they want to ensure that you are safe and protected during your visit." Thor and Loki nodded, accepting that answer

As they got into the limo, Tony, of course, had to make comments that his limos were better. Everyone just rolled their eyes at his pride and shook their heads in amusement. As they arrived at the White House, Thor was impressed by the security detail. Loki looked bored, but Darcy was extremely excited, as were Betty and Jane.

As Robert got out of the limo, he saw this group of individuals that were so were so different and strange, yet somehow had become a family . He had no idea when they stepped through the doors of the White House that it would lead to three people almost dying


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

 **Washington D.C.**

 **May 5, 2013**

As they entered the White House, everyone couldn't help but admire the beauty and classic feel of it. The two-hundred-year-old building had been through so much: wars, depressions, growth, and undeniable success. As everyone was lead into the State Dining Room, the amazement on their faces was evident. The room's walls were painted a light stone color, the mahogany dining table was surrounded by gold-upholstered chairs, and the plates and glasses were perfectly set.

"Who is that man in the painting?" Thor asked Loki in a surprised, hushed voice, pointing to a painting on the wall.

"I have no idea, but he seems in deep thought and troubled," Loki answered, just as confused.

"That is Abraham Lincoln, our 16th President," Darcy informed them, stepping between the two demigods. "He is deep in thought because the painting depicts the historic March 28, 1865 strategy session by the Union high command, composed of William Tecumseh Sherman, Ulysses S. Grant, and David Dixon Porter. Lincoln was aboard the steamboat _River Queen_ during the final days of the American Civil War. Truly one of the greatest leaders of our country, who, sadly, was also assassinated." Darcy beamed.

"I must admit, I am truly impressed, Lady Lewis. We must talk more about the history of this country and what else you know." Loki smiled at her, a hint of appreciation in his eyes.

Bruce was holding Betty's hand. "Betty, can you believe it? We are in the White House. This has been unreal, the past few months."

Betty just smiled. "Yes, I know it has been tough for us getting back into the swing of things, but I am so happy."

"You seem to be smiling a lot, Steve," Pepper observed.

"I always wanted to see the White House, growing up in the depression. The president worked very hard to get America back on top," Steve said, smiling

Tony just shrugged his shoulders. "I don't see what the big deal is. I have been here, like, five times. I have nicer furniture than this."

Steve just shook his head. "Tony, for once, can you relax and show a little respect, and not make us look like a bunch of idiots? Some of us have never been to the White House."

Tony pouted his lip out a little. "Fine, I will _try_ to be nice."

"Please take a seat," the guide said to them in a polite manner. "The president and the others shall join you shortly."

"Thank you," Fury replied. He was dressed in a simple business suit, ignoring the childish comments coming from Tony and Clint, who both got smacked in the back of the head by their other halves.

As everyone sat down, they admired the shining gold plates and silverware. The fresh red flowers on the table were beautiful and lit up the room. Darcy helped to inform certain individuals what to do in front of the president and other guests so that they wouldn't embarrass the team.

Two very serious Secret Service agents came into the room and moved to the opposites sides of the doorway. A man came out and stood to the side.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he announced grandly, "Please rise for the Prime Minster of Canada and the President of Mexico."

Everyone stood up in a uniform fashion. Fury gave a small nod of approval to the team. The two leaders came in, walked over to the table and remained standing.

"Now, please welcome the Secretary-General of the United Nations." The man entered the room and joined the others. "Please remain standing for the President of the United States of America and the First Lady." As they walked in with big smiles and over to the table, Steve, Fury, Hill, and Hall saluted the President. Even though they were retired from the military, it was an honored gesture.

"Thank you, everyone," the President of America as they all sat down. "It's nice to see all of you again. I would like to thank you for all the times that you have risked your lives to save the lives of your fellow men. As you can see, the leaders of Canada and Mexico are here, along with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. I would also like to pay homage to the two princes that are here on behalf of Asgard."

And with that, the four leaders rose and bowed politely to Loki and Thor. Thor and Loki accepted the homage with proud looks, and the leaders soon sat down.

Robert, Fury, Pepper, Darcy, and Tony all locked eyes with each other and nodded lightly. They obviously realized exactly why they had been asked to come.

"Well, I'm sure everyone is hungry. Let's eat, and then we can start talking." The food came out steaming; it was a lovely seafood pasta dish served with white wine.

"Prince Thor and Prince Loki, you have lived on our planet for a few years," they commented. "Prince Loki, I am to understand that there is evidence you had been mind-controlled, which was your prime motivation in attacking our planet."

"I-" was all Loki could get out before someone jumped to his defense.

"Mr. President, we are grateful for the honor to come tonight, but I would like to know what your intentions are before this line of questioning goes on," Darcy interjected.

"I thought that we could clear some things up," he said with a bit of defense in his carefully crafted words.

"Well, before we 'clear up' some things," she said as she held up her fingers in quotation marks, "I'm sure we all would like to know what is going on, to make sure there are no ill intentions here." A hint of fake cheer could be easily picked out of her words, but no one mentioned it.

"Darcy, please stand down and let him explain himself," Steve ordered. "Mr. President, I am truly sorry. We all tend to be protective of each other," Steve said. "Please explain what you'd like to."

"Thank you. What we are looking for here is..." He paused. "The leaders at this table would like to know, from the Princes of Asgard, if we can start to negotiate a treaty and start up a way to trade between our planets. Also, we'd like to offer the position of ambassador to Prince Loki permanently, or until a worthy replacement could be made."

"We feel that it is time to expand our relations with Asgard. I am sure that there are many things that our two worlds can learn from each other. Surely there are things on Earth that you don't have on Asgard: clothing, food, and other various items?" the president reasoned.

"Well, there goes Thor's monopoly on Pop Tarts," Clint muttered in an attempt to lighten the tense mood.

"Mr. President, you have been very kind, but the last time I saw Odin- the All father- he and the rest of the royal court looked down on Midgardians as, you would say, 'cavemen'," Loki answered honestly. "There is little they'd like to learn from a race such as yourselves," he said somewhat callously. Darcy glared at him, and Loki startled slightly. No one commented on it, luckily.

"Well, that's no good. Is there any way to talk to him? Or send a representative up there to see if we can discuss this and maybe change his mind?" the Prime Minister of Canada tried.

"Brother, because of recent events, especially with Agent Hall, Odin has begun to see the humans in a different light. He has begun to listen and ask questions about the technology of Earth," Thor said hopefully.

"Question on Asgard's people," the President of Mexico interrupted curiously. "Do you have different races or cultures, like on Earth?" he asked.

"Well, yes and no. There are different races. Elves and Dwarves live on Asgard, but the Asgardians, are of not of different skin tones." Loki was impressed: they had thought about this extensively. "The problem is, Mr. President, that I would have to reveal myself to the world, and I am sure the backlash would not be very positive.." Loki admitted his worry. "Especially if we can come to an agreement with the Allfather on a treaty with your countries ."

"The problem is, outside of this room, there is no proof that Loki is here on Earth. We need to let the people know about you being brainwashed and that you have no hostile intentions to take over the Earth," the president replied

"I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen," Loki scoffed, honestly worried but not one to show it.

"How can we be sure?"

"Because anyone that wants to rule and deal with your mindless, idiotic, pathetic, whiney ways is completely stupid. You start wars to kill each other over next to nothing, and you constantly build weapons that can destroy your entire race. The second someone comes out with an energy source, you want to use it before you fully understand it." He took a deep breath, not wanting to stop now that he had gotten started.

"I mean, less than sixteen hundred years ago, you thought the Earth was the center of the universe! A little over a thousand years you thought the Earth was flat. Still, to this day, there are people that think life outside earth doesn't exist. So to those people who want to think that I would waste my time and energy to conquer and rule you: no thank you. I don't want that job ever!" Loki finished angrily.

Robert started to laugh. "You know, Loki, I have often wondered what your response would be to that question. You don't disappoint at all." His comment lightened the mood a little, but everyone was stiff at Loki's statements.

Director Fury's phone went off, interrupting the moment. He looked at it and immediately, everyone could tell he was very upset. "Well, whatever plan you have to make Loki public, I would make it quickly. You've been hacked." With that, he turned his phone around and it showed a picture of Loki and Darcy entering the White House. The president was pissed off, immediately calling his Press Secretary and Head of Security.

"Well, that is disturbing," Loki stated.

"Why?" Darcy asked.

"Because I look better than that," he said with a smirk, making Darcy laugh into her hand.

"Well, time to put plan 'O' in operation," Robert Hall said seriously.

"Plan O? What is that, exactly?" Clint asked confused.

"Okay, Loki and I actually have been talking about this. Loki is going to sit down and be interviewed on national TV, broadcast also on the internet."

"Well, that covers the world, pretty much," Pepper said, drinking a sip of wine, not being able to resist after it so much drama.

"Exactly, then also with the interview, there will an extra forty-five minutes of the same interviewer asking all the Avengers some questions." Robert noticed that Clint and Natasha were concerned. "Hey, Spy Twins, relax. Loki is going to cast a spell on you two so that you look completely different."

"Who the heck are you going to get that everyone in the world knows and trusts?" Betty asked, honestly confused.

"Oh, there is one person." Robert leant back in his chair and just smirked cockily.

"No way!" Tony shouted, working out who it was first. " _I_ couldn't even get her."

Pepper looked at Tony, confused. "What are you talking about? The only person who ref…" Pepper's face turned very excited. "Oprah!"

Robert just leaned back and smirked.

"Yup. I got Oprah, bitch."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

 **Military base, Colorado**

 **May 6, 2013**

 _ **Matt's POV**_

Matt Jenkins was nervous as hell. Today was the day: the day to steal the materials he needed. One he has been planning for months now. He understood the risks that if he got caught, he would end up in jail for a very long time. However, that _monster_ was still out there, and getting rid of that was more important than the possible repercussions.

After witnessing the invasion a few months ago, the event was still swirling around, fresh in his mind. The image of that 'god' being praised was darkening his own soul; that 'god' was nothing more than a murderer. All he needed to do was time everything correctly in order to get the silicon-carbide vibranium alloy out, unnoticed. If he was successful, they would be able to make the explosive bullets rounds that could go through anything, including monsters and fake gods.

Soon, the soldier on duty would take his weekly ' _sneak off his post and hook up with his girlfriend for twenty minutes'_ break, which was more than enough time for him to leave with the silicon-carbide vibranium alloy. Matt would be able to make twenty ounces of it, which, according to Frank, would be more than enough to make all the bullets that they would need for testing and doing the job.

Matt hoped it would work and that his coworkers were absent-minded enough to not notice him taking it when the time came. He walked out of the lab to go to the bathroom at the perfect moment to see the guard sneak away. Matt couldn't believe his luck, and he knew he could not waste this moment. In his haste, he forgot about the need to use the bathroom and returned to his laboratory to collect his coffee cup. Dumping out the liquid, he felt his heart beating fast. As he grabbed the alloy, he felt his hands getting even more sweaty. There was a moment of hesitation, making him pause before he stuffed it into the false bottom of the cup. Once he had screwed it on, he ran his sleeve over his forehead, which was also sweating.

He was a goddamn scientist, not a spy. He could end up going to prison for thirty years for this. ' _Fuck it,'_ Matt decided finally. Three family members- three beloved friends- were dead. The government wouldn't do anything about it, so they would.

Matt ignored the doubts and the uneasy feeling in his stomach as he picked up his coffee cup and walked out of the door. He wanted to be quick without raising suspicion, since he knew that if the guard saw him, he'd be searched on sight. As he stepped further out into the corridor, relief filled him as he discovered it was empty. Without any more hesitation, he made his way through the door, and then immediately through the second security door. He could feel his heartbeat increasing.

Forty yards; one hundred and twenty feet to his car and success would be his. Matt's eyes were looking everywhere, not daring to leave a single stone unturned. There was no one around, but that did nothing to stop the dread forming in his stomach.

He walked about twenty feet and a light turned on to his right, far enough away that he almost missed it. His heart stopped and he could feel his lunch rising in his stomach. ' _What should I do_?' he thought wildly. Matt realized that if he was noticed he could be searched. The light went out just as quickly as it had turned on. He started walking quickly again, but this time he was almost jogging. Just a few seconds more. He came closer to the car and reached into his pocket to get the keys; the keys to freedom. As his hand went into his pocket, his heart stopped and a heavy stone of dread and fear dropped into his gut.

There was nothing there. He had left the keys in the lab with the rest of his lunch. He wanted to scream, to free his anger and let the world know, but he knew it wouldn't be a wise choice. Thinking it futile, but wanting to try everything, he looked at the lock. It was open.

' _A fucking miracle_.' He practically cried in relief. He quickly opened the door and lifted his seat. Matt had made a compartment in the seat that had the exact same coffee cup in it, being paranoid and wanting to be sure nothing could go wrong. He switched the two cups, closed the compartment, and lowered the seat. Matt quickly locked up the car and closed his door. He hurried back to the lab and was almost at the door. Then, he suddenly heard something that almost stopped his heart completely.

"Sir, please stop now!" a marine yelled firmly.

Matt stopped and turned around, trying to be as compliant as possible. The soldier approached him quickly and with purpose. ' _Fuck, a patrol_ ,' Matt thought, terrified.

"Why are you out here?" the buff man demanded.

"Um, hi. I forgot my coffee cup, so I went to get it," Matt stuttered out.

"Can I see your badge, please? Are you okay? You are sweating a lot, sir." The previously rude marine showed some concern.

"Of course." Matt handed it to him, quickly thinking of an excuse. He became very glad it was a hot night. "I must be getting spoiled by the air conditioning."

The soldier checked the badge and handed it back. "Dr. Jenkins, did you sign out with the guard on duty?"

Matt was getting nervous- really nervous. With a breath, he decided it would be best to be as honest as possible, but leaving a few things out. "No," he admitted. "Um, look, I don't want anyone to get into trouble. I just ran out to get my cup."

The soldier stepped into the light, and Matt couldn't believe his luck. "Okay, fine. I'll keep my mouth shut as long as you keep yours shut, cool?"

Matt almost laughed at the words he was hearing. "Yeah, we're cool," he reassured.

"Okay, get inside now, before someone sees us," the marine ordered.

Matt went inside and then back to the lab as fast as he could. He set his cup on the table and took a huge breath of relief. Then he remembered that he had to go to the bathroom, and started to leave to use the restroom.

"Dr. Jenkins, please come here now," he heard the guard at the desk yell up to him.

' _Fuck, they got me._ ' Matt almost started running, but he simply walked up to the desk with shaking hands. The guard handed him a clipboard. "Here, sign this part saying you went out to your car. I already went back and erased the footage. I'll just write up the gap as a glitch."

Matt couldn't believe it. Maybe fate was in play here. With a quick signature, he visited the bathroom and returned to his laboratory. After working for about twenty minutes to avoid suspicion, he texted both Frank and Cindy. It was a simple, pre-arranged text that would confirm he had accomplished his goal and they were all set to meet up. The text read: 'Good.'

 **Casa Lever Restaurant**

 **New York City**

 **May 7, 2013**

 **Cindy's POV**

The restaurant was expensive, known for it's amazing taste in food and class. If you wanted to impress an out-of-town client, this was the places. She made her way up the stairs with the red carpet and through a glass doorway. It was separate from everyone else and provided privacy. Today it was a little later in the afternoon, so the restaurant was pretty empty as she sat by herself at a table.

Cindy talked to Matt last night. After their conversation, she immediately made contact with her ' _special'_ client, but at each appointment she was greeted with an empty table or someone who said 'maybe next time.'

This meeting, she assumed, would be no different. Her head lolled to the side as she heard footsteps behind her.

"Ms. Allen," a thick German accent spoke behind her, and she spun around as the male approached her. He was a bald, older man who had a monocle over his right eye and stood with a firm posture. The confidence boomed off him and one glance into his eyes showed that he was not a man you'd mess with. "May I join you?"

"Yes, please do." Cindy had her hopes high that she finally was meeting someone of importance.

"I am glad to meet you. You have been successful with helping my associates make profit, and, not to be nosy, but I am to understand that you wish for something. I do thank you and apologize about the other meetings, but we all must be careful," he said, surprisingly honest.

"Thank you, and of course I understand. I just do what I am paid to do, that's all." She paused, a thoughtful expression on her face. "I was hoping you would know some people that can help my family through a grieving process. I have lost two cousins and a brother in the past year to extremely unusual events, and the proper authorities have done nothing to help."

"Keep going, please," the man requested, curious at how they could help.

Cindy pulled a folder out of her bag. As she opened the folder, she placed three photos down. "This is Henry Jenkins. He died on June 2nd, 2011 at Culver University because of this green monster." She placed a blurry image of the Hulk by his photo. "This is Mary Williams. She died the same day in New Mexico, because this man decided to do a battle in the middle of town with a monster instead of fighting it in a safe place." Although Cindy would never know it, Frank had lied to everyone about the details. He wanted everyone to be believe that the blond-haired man was the reason for the carnage. "Earlier this year, my brother Mike was killed by those fucking aliens, and this man or alien was the leader of them." She placed the final photo down.

"I am very sorry for these tragic events. You all must be saddened by these," the man said politely. "But I am confused. Why do you seek us out?"

"I am no fool. I know that your people can do things that…" She hesitated, pausing for a moment; she did not want to seem rude. "...bypass the law. I'm not threatening you, because I am not that stupid. If you don't want to help, I will look elsewhere."

"Good, because you would be dead," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Exactly. I don't know who you are, nor do I want to. I am confident you and whomever you work for can get anything done for the right price."

"I will not disagree. Continue, but I will warn you, our price is quite high."

"I can afford it," Cindy commented, determined, before adding, "or find a way to bargain."

"Bargain?" A rare smile appeared on his face. "I am interested. How can you bargain?" He seemed amused.

"I know two people who are designing a bullet which can pierce any skin and go through any material on the planet. No armor will be thick enough, strong enough, to resist it. I think that would be something interesting that your people could find very useful," she stated, hoping she had his focus now.

The left eyebrow of the man twitched, and she now knew for certain he was interested. "I would agree. Tell me, is this bullet ready?"

"No, but in about a week it will be worked on around the clock, and as soon as it is ready, we'll be ready to demonstrate for you."

"Very good. We will contact you. You do not contact us. At all. Now, if you are working for anyone and planning on betraying us, you will be dead," he said, his response once again cold.

"I will not betray you," Cindy responded, matching his tone.

"Goodbye, Ms. Allen." He stood up from the table and walked out of the room.

* * *

 **Baron Von Strucker POV.**

As Baron walked out to the doorway, he stopped and turned back to look at Cindy for a single moment, and found her was holding the picture of her brother. He turned away once more and walk out of the restaurant. As soon he was on the sidewalk, he got out his cell and picked out a very specific contact and called them.

 _Ring. Ring_. Click. Baron could hear the sound of someone breathing.

" _Was the intel correct_?" the person asked.

"Yes, it was completely accurate."

" _So, what do you advise?_ "

"Full surveillance on everyone. The second that bullet is ready, I want to know," he replied as he began walking.

" _Yes, I agree. We will get the best ones on them. Do you believe them in what they say?_ "

"Yes. they want blood." Baron smirked. "We can do that."

" _And then after?_ "

"They will either support us or drown in their own blood."

" _I agree_." A moment passed before two very important words were uttered. " _Hail Hydra!_ "

"Hail Hydra!" was the answer. Baron ended the call with a heavy finger before getting out of the street.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

 **New Mexico**

 **May 5,2013**

A piercing, sharp sound filled the darkened room and was quickly followed by a deep groan. An arm made its way out from under the covers of a soft bed, reaching over to the dresser. The fingers fumbled around until they felt the familiar rectangular shape of a cell phone. The hand grabbed the phone and brought it over to its body, quickly disabling the alarm and soon dropping the phone on the bed. There were a few seconds of peaceful silence before an "Uuugghhh. Fuck," was mumbled out from the bed and a man lifted himself up above the dark green covers. The man with simple brown hair scrubbed his hands over his face a few times, attempting rub the sleep out of his eyes. His shoulders drooped and it was obvious that he had little motivation right now.

Half an hour later, he had completed his morning routine of getting ready for the Daily Lie. Yes, the Daily _Lie_ ; the one where he tells everyone that he's okay-doing great. That things are looking up, which he would prove with a big smile and a fake laugh at the stupid jokes others tell. Why the Daily Lie? Because it was a hell of a lot easier to fool people than it was to try to explain the constant feeling of anger and thirst for revenge. At least once every night, he had the nightmare of Mary dying and the memory of how it felt when he saw the news footage of the Green Monster that had killed his cousin, Henry. He had immediately called Matt, screaming into the phone. Then, he'd seen the blond hair and the red cape. It was him, the asshole that had gotten Mary killed.

The psychiatrist had told him he was wrong: Mary had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

' _Bullshit. Mary would be alive if he had not been there,'_ he thought.

Frank had changed the story, electing to tell people that the man brought the robot there and that he'd wanted to fight it in the middle of town. This adapted story of the events included the man laughing at Frank, holding Mary's dead, burnt body and making BBQ jokes, and that all the M.I.B. had done was threaten to arrest anyone that would not comply. The final detail he added was that they had ripped Mary out of his arms and thrown him down on the ground.

He hadn't been able to believe his eyes when he saw that murderer smashing the aliens, trying to act like a hero.

' _You think this will clear you of your past crimes? Fuck you! I will hunt you down and kill you!'_ After his talk with Matt, they'd come up with the game plan: They would make a new bullet- a version of the Raufoss Mk 211 high explosive round. The head of it would be made of silicon-carbide vibranium alloy, with the feet per second of the explosive round and the accuracy of a Barrett M82 50 cal. It would change the world forever and, in Matt and Frank's eyes, for the better. No longer would people have to be afraid of the Fake Gods and Monsters.

Frank had worked as a bullet manufacturer for a few years. He had been doing okay there, but then everything had happened. Now he had a new goal; a more righteous goal. He'd begun studying everything he could to learn about how to make bullet heads so that he could make the heads and attach them. The manufacturer had noticed his sudden drive, so they'd sent him to a nice shrink for the typical conversation just to make sure he wasn't crazy. Frank had easily convinced them that he was okay, that he just wanted to do better in life. The doctor had signed off on him, not actually caring about Frank, and he had soon been promoted for his hard work.

Over the next few months, he had learned everything about what needed to be done. When Matt actually came through and got what they needed, Frank would be ready to go. It was going to be a long process and he wanted to make sure everything was right; there was a lot riding on this.

Matt had done his end, and Cindy was getting the hitman, or hitmen. She was putting up a lot of money, more then Frank had even known she'd had. Frank knew he had to do his part and succeed. He was going as far as to take other metals to test making the heads so he would know exactly what he was doing when it was time to make the reason for all of his struggle: his true hope, his true revenge...

 **May 7, 2013**

Matt finally brought the materials to him and the two of them began working long hours in their obsession to finish the bullet.

Frank could only sleep a couple of hours at a time before he was bursting with the urge to go back to work. Eventually, his late nights and early mornings lead to mistakes- something Matt didn't appreciate.

"Frank, you can't do it all right now. You're going to end up screwing up and ruining everything we've worked so hard to achieve," Matt told him honestly.

"I can handle it," he replied stubbornly. "Relax. It'll be fine."

"No, I'm not taking any chances here." Matt stated, He refused to allow Frank to mess this up. "I risked everything- including going to a federal prison- to get this stuff to you. Now, you've got the time to work carefully. Use it!" Matt ordered.

"Okay, fine!" he sighed, before admitting to himself something needed to give. "I'll take some time off."

"Good. You're not allowed to work on this until you get a good night of sleep. We need to be perfect here."

"Fuck you! You wouldn't know this shit from a hole in the ground. You need me. You can't do anything without me. If I can't work on it, then neither can you," Frank replied, paranoid after so long without sleep.

"I'm not the one that's falling asleep at work and at the wheel," Matt shot back. "What would happen if you died in a car accident or at work? Goddammit, you selfish fuckball, I've lost enough family already."

"Fuckball?! What the hell is a fuckball?" He let out a light laugh as he finally realized the complete truth: this was one of his only family left and Frank wasn't going to push him out. "You always were creative with words. What the hell does that even mean?"

"Fuckball? I have no idea," Matt said, his posture a lot more relaxed. "I love you, Frank. You and Cindy are all I have left," he said, baring his soul.

"I know. I'm sorry, okay? I'll go in tonight and then take some time off and get a good night of sleep," he promised.

"All right, good. Just to make things fair, I won't do anything until you get back home."

Just as they reached a consensus, Matt's cell phone went off. _Ring. Ring._

"Hello… Hey, Cindy, what's up? Really... Excellent... Yes, we're making progress. Hopefully by the end of the next month, we'll be able to go... Really?... Wow, that's good to hear! ...No price yet? That's odd… Yes, we trust you... Okay, Cindy… Yes... We love you. Stay in touch." _Click_.

Frank stood there, waiting patiently for Matt to explain the phone call- it had sounded positive to him.

"Cindy said that her contacts are really expensive, but she thinks she can handle that part. Frank, she really believes that these are the right people for us," Matt said with a hopeful tone that he hadn't had for a long while.

"Good. The last thing we need is for some rookie to mess things up." Frank took a deep breath. "Alright, I'm going to go shower and take a nice, long nap. We can pick up tomorrow night after dinner. Deal?" He looked Matt in the eye.

"Yes, deal," Matt agreed earnestly.

Later that night, as Frank got to work, he submitted three weeks of time off. His boss was glad to see him take time off, since the last time he'd taken time off was when Mary had been killed. Frank had been asked where he was going to go and answered that he might go east.

' _Oh well, what's another lie_?' he thought, far calmer about this than he should have been.

* * *

 **24 hours later**

The two cousins felt recharged after a day of catching up on sleep and eating a good, home-cooked dinner.. By the next morning, they had completed it; the first bullet had been created. They were beyond excited. This was their entire life now.

They had both hurried outside to their makeshift gun range, and Frank brought his Barrett M82, Sally, out. After a tension filled with a few seconds of deep breaths, he opened the chamber, put the bullet in, and loaded the gun with a smooth click.

Matt stood to one side with a fire extinguisher and a first aid kit, not that it would really do any good if the gun blew up in Frank's hands. Needless to say, they weren't all that confident that their first version would work.

The target was an old car that was parked about four hundred feet away. It had already been pretty shot up, but would be ideal for what they needed it for today. Frank rested the gun on a picnic table on the left side of his house. There was so much hope and so many prayers that had gone into this moment. Frank lined up the sight with target. With a glance at the ribbon tied to one of the trees, he observed that there was no wind.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Within a second, his eyes snapped open. He felt good about the shot, as he liked to every time he fired a gun. His finger was on the trigger with the safety off. With a small tug, their future shot off. There was a loud crack that had Frank cringing. For a half of a second, everything stood still. Then there was the flash of the explosion going off in the engine block of the car.

Matt yelled with joy, shouting out his overwhelming emotion.

Frank just closed his eyes, letting his breath out. They had done it. The first test was a success. It was true hope: the first they felt in over a year. A smile actually formed on his lips. His only thought was, ' _Enjoy breathing, you monsters. Your time will end soon.'_


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

 **May 6, 2013**

While flying home from the White House, Robert found himself staring out the window at the night sky. He could feel a mighty headache starting.

' _How the fuck am I going to convince the entire world that Loki is a good guy?'_ he thought with a strong sense of despair before he felt a soft, warm hand on top of his. As he turned, he saw her warm eyes and soft lips.

"Earth to Robert. You okay? You seem very distant," Maria noted with deep concern. She was trusting, but he was always afraid that he would let her down.

Robert just smiled. "Yeah. I'm just remembering a time when my life was a little simpler. Now, I seem to be of the habit of putting myself in impossible situations." He smiled more sincerely as he admired how she smiled back at him. They enjoyed those few moments of just looking at each other.

"Don't worry. I'm sure that with everyone's help, you will figure it out. If it goes south, Fury will be there to yell at you- just blame Stark," she joked lightheartedly. He looked up and saw Tony sit down across from them with a drink in hand.

Tony spoke with a slight slur. "So, lover boy, how the hell did you hook us up with Oprah? She has a wait list of six months, and that's just to be _considered._ She won't even talk to me because she doesn't consider me interesting enough for some messed up reason."

Robert rolled his eyes. "No, Tony. She told me she wouldn't talk to you because at that time, you were an alcoholic, selfish, and very childish. She already had enough of those idiots to interview; you had nothing to offer at that moment."

"Whatever. Her loss. I'm over it," he said with a lazy shrug as he stood up and sat beside Bruce and Betty instead.

Maria let out a small sigh. "Yeah, Tony is over it like the Eagles are over losing the Super Bowl in 2004," she commented with a smirk. They both knew that would annoy him.

"Geez, thanks for reminding me," Robert sarcastically answered, giving her a joking glare.

Maria turned to look Robert in the eye with her soft lips curling upwards teasingly. "Oops, I forgot that you liked them for some strange reason." She gave him an innocent look with a twinkle in her eye.

Robert shook his head. "Bullshit." He leaned over, his hands on each side of her face to pull her closer so that he could kiss the top of her head. Maria moved a little closer to snuggle, her head coming to rest on his shoulder. He didn't bother to hide the smile on his face, which only grew when she planted a small kiss on his neck.

The rest of the flight home was quiet and peaceful. How were they supposed to know that their peaceful times would be shattered so soon?

* * *

 **May 7th,2013**

The next day, Robert, Thor, and Loki were sitting at table discussing what items Asgard would want from Earth, or vice versa. Robert was starting to regret the decision of allowing Thor to participate in the conversation as he felt his blood pressure rising.

"Thor, I'm pretty sure that not everyone on Asgard would want Pop-Tarts as much as you. I don't want the universe to see the Earth as a bunch of junk food losers." Robert sighed, running a hand over his face as he explained, once again, the type of things they should be taking. "I'm trying to be reasonable here. What about clothes, machines, medicine, or a million other things that we could trade with your people? I don't think we need to send anymore food."

Thor's face lit up. He had an idea. "Hmm, you have made a valid point. Can we also add in Midgard's weapons? With the Terminator movies too?"

Loki just let his head flop on the table and then he did it again, making a moaning sound.

"Why did we allow him in this conversation again, Loki?" Robert frustratedly asked as he leaned back his chair.

"I don't know. If you remember, please remind me," Loki replied while shaking his head.

"Okay. Thor, we have no idea how food is going to be transferred and how much weight the Bifrost can handle." Robert was trying to get the conversation back on track. The two princes looked at each other with puzzled faces. Robert immediately knew the answer. "I'm going to take a wild guess that you both don't know. I mean, this is important. Are we talking a few hundred pounds or several tons? How often can it be used?"

"Nobody knows for sure. I remember the one time, it handled Odin on Sleipnir, Loki, Lady Sif, the Warriors Three and I," Thor answered, obviously reminiscing from the look in his eyes.

"Okay, well, that sounds like close to three tons. I guess it will be a process to see what happens. Anyways, Loki, you come with me. We have to meet Steve and Pepper about your interview."

"I don't understand this matter; Why do we have to do this? I'm known as silver tongue anyway. I know how to handle this," he replied cockily, dismissing Robert.

"The last thing I need is for you to say something and piss everybody off more. What's your reaction if she asks about your children?" Immediately, Loki's face turned hard and he shot Robert a death glare, but when Loki's eyes flickered to his, Robert made the ' _I told you so'_ face.

"Fine, let's go," Loki mumbled, giving in. "Why is Steve there?" he questioned as his shoulders dropped down.

"Because he will be nice, supportive, and will be able to give a different opinion than the rest of us. Plus, he's not a jackass like Tony, so he can add some moral insight."

"Fair enough," Loki replied, seeming to accept the answer.

* * *

Four hours later, Tony turned up and everything turned chaotic: Tony started to crack jokes and Loki lost his temper slightly, throwing a soda can at him. Tony ducked to avoid getting hit, but it accidently hit Bruce, who was walking by with Betty; he nearly hulked out. Thankfully, Betty was able to calm Bruce down. Pepper and Betty then both made death threats to Tony, who immediately left.

It was two hours before they had all finally calmed down completely and felt comfortable with each other.

"Why does this have to be _live?_ I've seen plenty of interviews that are taped," Loki questioned as they leaving the room to go to dinner.

"Okay, that's a fair question," Robert admitted before thinking of the possible reasons why being live would be better. "This needs to appear truthful and not edited. You're really sorry that you killed hundreds of lives. You _are_ sorry, right?"

"Yes, I do feel bad. I wish I hadn't caused so much damage- or any, as a matter of fact- while under Thanos' control," Loki answered.

"Alright, then. Hopefully this works, because the entire planet will be watching. I'm sure it will be re-broadcasted all over the world again and again," Robert commented, crossing his fingers discretely.

"Agent Hall?" Loki stopped and turned around to face the agent.

"Yes, Loki?" Robert asked as he came to a stop, wondering what would come out of his mouth next.

"Do you honestly think this will work?" Loki asked with a gaze that wanted a honest answer.

Robert felt that the words were the most genuine and honest that Loki had uttered the whole discussion.

"Are you going to change everyone? No! Of course not. But maybe you can convince a billion or so, and we can only go up from there."

Later that night, Robert was working on his computer when he heard his phone go off. He checked it and saw it was Maria calling. A smile formed on his lips as he answered the call.

"Hey, Maria, to what do I owe this pleasure?" He felt his heart beat a little faster, and, a warm feeling building up inside him.

"Unfortunately, I wish I was calling with better news."

He felt all that positivity come crashing down. "Uh-oh. What's wrong?" he asked, not bothering to keep the concern from his voice.

"The council's not happy. They found out about the United Nation and the North American government's plans. They don't like these things happening without their consent."

"So? Fuck them. Tell them to pull the stick out of their asses and go die in a hole. I swear to God, Maria." Robert felt his temper getting ahold of him, but he knew it wasn't Maria's fault.

"I wish it was that easy. Also, they believe Barton and Loki are a threat."

"A threat? Bullshit!" Robert exclaimed. "The real threat is going to be when Natasha and Darcy hear about this; they're going to go ballistic."

"I know. That's why I am telling you this now."

Suddenly, there was a pounding at the door. "Hall, I know your ass is in there!" Robert heard a woman scream outside the door.

"Wow, news spreads quickly. Thanks for the warning." Robert was honestly grateful for the advance notice.

"Good luck." _Click._ And just like that, Maria was gone.

Robert looked at his phone as he shook his head and thought, ' _Geez, love you too_.' He walked over to the door and opened it, and there was Darcy with a majorly pissed-off look.

"I'm going to take a wild guess at what you're pissed off about. I just found out myself."

The raging woman just looked at Robert, and her face softened. "Can you help him?"

Robert motioned for Darcy to come in, and as the door closed he gave her a hug.

"So, how did you find out?" As he let her go, she looked up to him.

"I was doing my usual hacking and just came across it. Natasha is going to be furious. Loki's pissed; he was talking about not doing the interview." Darcy felt her eyes get misty.

"That might be the understatement of the century. Look, go to him, comfort him. You know damn well that I'm going to keep everyone safe. He needs to do that interview. Otherwise, I don't know what to do." His brown eyes just showed how much he cared.

"I know that, Robert. Thank you. It's just... Loki and Clint, I just care about them," she said sadly as a tear fell down her cheek.

"I understand. I really do. I need to start making phone calls." He wiped away the tear and gave her another hug before she walked out of the room. He was going to do everything he could to fix this.

"Stupid fucking idiots!" Robert yelled out in his apartment, just finishing a forty-five minute phone conversation about Agent Barton. He flopped in his recliner, rubbing his head and placing his feet on the table. Suddenly, in a moment of rage, he kicked the table over; it flipped and landed on one of the legs, which caused it to snap in half. "Fuck!" Robert was pissed off. "Goddamn World Council! I will find a way to end you."

"Sorry," came a faint whisper from the air vent in the ceiling.

"Barton, get your ass out here." Barton came out of the vents with a sheepish look on his face. "How long, and how much?" Robert felt his face flush with anger.

"Um, since the beginning of the conversation," Clint admitted to the stern-faced agent.

"Damn it, Barton, you weren't supposed to be involved. I'm trying my hardest to get people away from you. I hate to say it, but it's much easier to help Banner out than you."

"I know," Clint sighed, leaning up against the wall as he ran a hand through his hair. "I think quitting the team will make everything easier. I know Natasha and Steve have taken some flack because of me."

"One: No, don't you ever talk like that again. I refuse to let Bruce quit, so what makes you think I'll let you up and leave? Two: If Romanoff and Rogers knew you were even considering it, they'd beat your head in. They're old enough to handle themselves. Three: Nothing is going to happen to you."

"How long do you think that's even going to last, huh? Those fuckers still think I'm a liability, and Fury can only do so much. The Council is in charge of him, and they can go over his head, just like they did in New York." Barton was frustrated; even after six months, there was so much doubt about his character. "They act like I'm worthless to the team, and I'm starting to regret ever joining."

"Cut the crap, Barton, because it's you who's pissing me off. You know you're good for this team. Without you, the team would have gone to shambles months ago. You are needed on this team just like everyone else. You watch everybody's backs and inform them when they're in danger. Plus, who the hell else can shoot an arrow a half a mile and hit a robot frog in the eye? Only the best damn shot in the world, which just so happens to be you."

"I'm sorry, Barton. This is my fault, too." Loki suddenly appeared in the room, looking downtrodden. "In all honesty, if I could reverse the events, I would. You shouldn't be forced to suffer for what I did."

"Don't you start, either." Robert ordered sternly. "Now look, both of you: You had no control in what you were doing. I know it sucks, but I'm asking for both of you to trust me."

"What are you going to do?" Loki asked the agent.

"Simple. We go to Plan B."

"What is plan B?" Clint questioned.

With a big smile, Robert looked at the two Avengers. "Hiroshima. Ring a bell?"

* * *

A little later on, Robert had just gotten off the phone with Fury when Jarvis spoke.

" _Agent Hall, Agent Romanoff is headed to your door, and she is in a mood."_

"A mood?, What kind of mood?"

" _I believe the best description is 'scary'."_

"Oh, fucking great. Open the door, and have the others on standby."

" _Of course, Agent Hall, and good luck."_

Romanoff slammed the door open and got up into Robert's face within seconds.

"What the hell is going on? Why is the council after Barton? He is majorly depressed right now! Is Fury going to let him get taken? Why haven't you done anything? You'd better start talking, Hall."

"Okay, I was on the phone with Fury and the moron Council for an hour defending Barton. You know damn well I am doing my best to protect him," Robert replied firmly, not appreciating the amount of questions and accusations thrown at him. "Yes, Fury is trying to protect him as well, but his hands are tied. I am trying to come up with a plan B to help him, so get off my back."

Natasha's face softened only slightly, most would miss it. "I apologise. He made the call- he saved me- so I owe him my life. I don't have many friends. He's helped me in so many ways... I feel helpless on this," she admitted, looking away from him.

"I know. I am trying my hardest."

As she looked back at him, he noticed her face had changed in a way he never thought was possible with her. Her eyes said everything: she loved him as a sister and would die for him. He was her world, and God help anyone that threatened her love. Hers lips quivered slightly with everything that was going on; she looked at a loss of what to do.

 _ **Natasha's POV.**_

She is the Black Widow. She is not allowed feel this. But this is Clint; her Clint. How dare they pass judgement.

 _Wait, what is Hall doing? Why is he raising his arms? What does he think he's doing? Is he actually hugging me? How dare he hug me!_

"Is he going to be okay?" The words escape her mouth before she can catch them, but she does not return the hug. She just scoots away from him.

"Believe me, _moy dragotsennyy krasnyy pauk_ , (My precious red spider), when I say I will kill to keep him safe if I have to."

As Natasha looks back into Robert's brown eyes, she could could swear they get a little darker. She feels in her heart that he actually would.

 **May 8, 2013**

The next day during breakfast, Robert told the team what was going on. Naturally, it was an uproar. After a while, everyone calmed down and discussed ways to solve the problem, skipping all assassination options. It was actually Jane that gave Robert an idea.

"The World Council is stupid. I mean, we have the Security Council at the U.N. What gives them the right to launch a nuclear missile into a country?"

"Holy shit, Jane, that is it!" Robert yelled out with joy. "I bet the rest of the world doesn't know about the World Council and that they would be pissed off if they knew that this group of people could just launch a missile into their country with no explanation or accountability."

"I would be pissed," Tony added. "Jarvis, start searching for any paperwork or anything about this matter."

" _Yes, Sir, I will let you know what I find out. Sir, just to let you know, the TV Promo for Loki is about to air."_

"Cool, Jarvis. Put it on the screen, please."

The giant screen turned on with the volume up and the lights dimmed.

' _Oprah Winfrey has been hailed as one of the greatest interviewers of our time. She is known for her heart, caring, and compassion, but she is also tough. She helped uncover the abuse scandal of Nike shoes, the corruption of Hammer Industries, the embezzlement of the Charities for the Battle of New York, and now she is going to sit down with the man who has become the face of evil in our time. He is compared with Stalin, Hitler, Hussein, Satan: Loki, God of Lies and Chaos._

 _Or is he?! Is he a victim, a person that was not able to make that choice? Was he a victim of abuse and neglect? Oprah Winfrey wants to know. She wants to give him the chance to sit down in front of our world and explain what really happened. She wants to answer the rumors. Does he live on Earth? Is it true that he is an actual member of the same people that defeated him? Is he truly sorry?'_

Oprah's stern face appeared on the screen. "I will give Loki the chance that he deserves to explain the truth because, as we all know, the truth is the only answer that Earth deserves."

' _Next Friday at 8pm EST, on all news channels, and on the internet .'_

The TV turned off and the lights came back on. Loki just stared at Robert.

"Who came up with that ad?" he growled.

"Actually, Jarvis, Pepper, Jane, Darcy, me, Tony and the P.R. Department of Stark Industries. Look, Loki, we trie…." Loki stood up and walked over to Darcy.

You could tell she was scared that he was going to snap. Suddenly, he picked her up out of the chair.

"I have only thing to say to you," he said in a dark voice.

"What?" Everyone was ready to jump to save her when he pulled her close and hugged her.

"Thank you. It is perfect. You guys really do care."

"You jackass, you scared me. I thought you were going to go psycho on me!" With that, they kissed each other.

Everyone just took a deep breath and relaxed.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

 **Undisclosed Location**

 **Slovakia**

 **May 2013**

It had been built over seven hundred years ago and had served as a staging location for the crusades. Many gruesome battles and cringe-worthy deaths had occurred there. Kings and queens with their royal courts had played out their little games on the top of the mountain.

Its new occupants have been living there for fifteen years now. No one in town had the guts to talk about them. If you were caught being nosey, you weren't seen again.

There were a variety of defenses against trespassers: armed guards with orders to kill, an electric fence which had enough power to kill, motion sensors which could calculate the size of the intruder.

On the inside, it was strict and orderly; the troops never smiled. At one of the desks, a soldier was finishing up a report. He stood up a few sentences later and made his way to his superior officer.

"Sir, latest intel reports," the soldier said with the utmost respect.

The officer accepted the reports and dismissed him with a lazy wave. As he read over them, a small smile appeared on his face. He stood up from his desk quickly and turned around to walk over to a thick oak door. With a tight fist, he knocked three times.

"Come in," came the sharp order from the other side. The officer took a breath and opened the door.

"Hail Hydra!" he greeted with a firm voice before saluting the man behind the desk.

"Hail Hydra!" the man replied as he, too, saluted.

"The latest reports from New Mexico, Baron." He handed the report to the very serious man.

Baron Von Strucker adjusted his monocle as he read through it, a little smirk growing on his face. "So they actually made the bullet," he said more than asked. "Excellent. I think it is time to contact them and arrange a meeting. We can settle on a price there. Prepare my jet, would you," Baron commanded. "Oh, and contact the Asset. I believe it's time."

"Hail Hydra!" The officer, said knowing what his orders were.

"Hail Hydra!" Baron Von Strucker answered.

 **New Mexico** , **24 Hours Later**

After completing numerous tests, Matt and Frank decided that they should celebrate their good fortune. They went out to a local bar, a favorite of theirs. Frank was pleased when he realised that it wasn't very busy before ordering a pitcher of beer and some simple bar appetizers. The food was okay, but it wasn't like they expected a seven course meal and the finest wine anyway.

Then, both of their expressions changed as they glanced up at the television. They saw a commercial that had them both coughing as they choked on their food. They could not believe their eyes. Immediately, Matt's phone went off. Frank glanced at the caller ID and saw that it was Cindy before Matt answered the call.

"Hello? ...Yes, Cindy… We know... Yes, I can't believe it… What?... The Avengers..."

Images of the team appeared on the screen: Hulk, Iron Man, Thor, Loki.

"Oh my god, the whole team of monsters; Hulk and Thor too… Okay, can you get a hold of them… No? What do you mean no? They'll get in touch with us? ...Are you sure? Well, you should call them... Of course I trust you… Okay… Goodbye."

As Matt hung up the phone, Frank could tell he was pissed. He had that look in his eyes. "She said that they'll contact us when they're ready."

"Who is 'they'?" Frank asked.

"I don't know! She won't tell me the name. She said it would be better for our health."

"The fuck! Our _health?_ We can take of ourselves. Fuck this." Frank didn't like the secrets and potential repercussions of working with whomever Cindy had found.

A man approached the table. He was tall with a blonde buzz-cut and no facial hair. He had on a black dress shirt and just stood there staring at them for a long time.

"What do you want? You got a problem?" Frank challenged angrily, already pissed off.

"What the hell do you want?" Matt questioned dismissively.

"If you were wise, you would listen to your cousin, Cindy. As for your problems, we are the ones that might solve them." With his a heavy European accent, he almost sounded Russian. "How many tests has the bullet passed?"

Matt and Frank were stunned. Matt looked nervous but Frank was the type that did not back down. He had a gun on him, and started to reach for it. His hand was almost on it, but he stopped as he felt a barrel against his back.

"Now, Mr. Williams, your deceased sister would be greatly upset if you were to be killed before you could avenge her death, so let's not do anything rash." Frank knew he had no chance, so he let his hands fall to his sides. He knew when to give it up. The man behind him removed Frank's gun and put it in his jacket.

"Now, please, if you don't mind, let's talk somewhere more private. There is business to discuss." Frank and Matt looked nervously at each other. "Relax. Let's get going; we're not in the business of losing contacts before we discuss details. Besides, Cindy will be here with my superior in three hours."

The cousins looked shocked. Matt had spoken to Cindy less than fifteen minutes ago. She hadn't said anything about coming out. The blond man saw their confusion and concern.

"After she hung up the phone with you, we knocked on her door and told her. So, let's go. Oh…" He turned back and pointed to the food. "If you don't mind, bring your leftovers. It'll be a long wait."

Frank and Matt paid their tab and got the leftovers. They got into Frank's SUV and the blond man got into the back seat.

"My partner will follow us. Please drive normally. Any attempt to hurt us or contact the police, and we will not hesitate to kill your cousin."

They both nodded silently.

The drive to Frank's place took twenty minutes. The blond man's partner pulled in behind Frank's vehicle, blocking it in as they got out of the trucks and walked to the house. Frank unlocked the door and they all walked in as the lights came on. The two men looked around at the home; it was a mess and helplessly dirty. The Europeans looked at each other with a raised eyebrow.

 **New York City, 30 minutes earlier**

 **Cindy's POV**

Cindy was still shaking; she couldn't believe her eyes. That motherfucker had just been on TV. How could her government be okay with this? The Avengers were harboring that psycho. She had just gotten off the phone with Matt and was pleased to hear that the bullet was ready.

Cindy smiled as she realised that the chance to avenge Mike was closer. As she closed her eyes, she could see it clear as day how it would happen.

 _It was a darkened room; Loki was chained to a steel table_. _H_ _e could wiggle a little_ , _but that was about it. Cindy walked into the room with a long knife in hand, wearing dark blue scrubs._

" _I've been waiting for this moment for a long time, you fucking bastard."_

 _Loki had a look of pure fear in his eyes as the sweat poured from his forehead. He was begging for his life; pleading for mercy. Cindy would have none of that. She felt her blood run cold, her heart actually slowing down a little. Her eyes focused on her target, the source of her hatred, and she walked closer to him._

 _When she was in front of him, she raised the knife, slowly moving closer. She was loving the moment; the pure terror in his eyes. Loki was still begging, crying, but she would have none of that_.

" _You killed him. You led those monsters to him. I want you to feel my pain; the pain of him being ripped from my life. I want you to feel the sorrow of all the children whose parents you killed."_

 _Loki kept saying that he was sorry; that it wasn't his fault. Cindy didn't care. She lifted the cold blade and gently touched his face and in one motion chopped off his right ear. He howled in pain, the blood spraying out over the floor in a fine mist. Cindy grabbed a wad of gauze and taped it to his head. Cindy's smile grew larger_.

" _Can't have you bleeding out and dying too quickly now."_

She was pulled out of her thoughts when there was a loud series of banging at her door. With a shake of her head, she stood up and glanced out of the window; there were three men standing on her porch. She recognized one of them from the restaurant and opened the door.

"I guess it's time," she said, really hoping that they weren't here to kill her.

The imposing man in front of her nodded. "Yes. You have ten minutes to gather your things. It is time to talk business."

 **New Mexico, One Hour Later**

"Make yourselves comfortable."

Frank walked to the couch and sat down as Matt sat down in the recliner.

"What do you want to know? Or are you just going to wait till everyone gets here?"

The two agents looked at each other. "Why do you want these people dead?"

"What do you mean _why_? They killed our family members and nobody is willing to do anything, so we decided to take action ourselves. Many more people will die if they aren't stopped!" Frank replied forcefully, almost shouting.

"Do you know what it's like to lose a brother?" Matt asked rhetorically, a lot calmer than Frank. "What makes it even worse is when it happens right in front of you and there's not a goddamn thing you can do. Well, we decided we're going to do something."

The blond man looked at him for a long time, eyes cold. "I _do_ know what it's like to lose a brother. My brother _and_ my father were killed in front of me because of the American forces ' _doing the right thing_ ,'" he said, making quotation marks with his fingers. "And they did nothing to help me and my mother. They were killed by troops in a raid."

Matt looked at the man with sorrow. "I'm sorry; I didn't know that. I was out of line."

The blond man looked at Matt. "It's fine. We have a common goal now. By the way, I am Drake."

The other man introduced himself as Nicholas.

For the next few hours, they talked to each other about the family members they had lost. The pain they felt actually helped them bond.

The blond man's phone went off and he answered it. The conversation was brief and he hung up after a few sentences before informing everybody that they had landed at the airport and they would arrive in a half hour.

Ten minutes later, Cindy showed up with the others. As they came in, Matt and Frank could see the tall man with an eyeglass on one eye. He definitely had a 'don't-fuck-with-me' attitude.

The other two men saluted the man. "Hail Hydra!"

"Hail Hydra," the man said back

"Oh shit," Matt said. "When you said your were going to get the right people, you weren't kidding!"

"Yes, that is correct, Dr. Jenkins. Now, let us talk about the deal. You would like to hire us to kill these three people, is that correct?" He waited for them to nod. "Let's sit and we can discuss the terms."

Everyone took as seat as requested and Frank handed out some beer to everyone. After a few minutes of silence, the bald man stood up.

"I am going to ask one more time: Are you sure you'd like to do this? And, remember, if you want this done there is no turning back."

He looked at his cousins and they were nodding, so Frank decided to answer for all of them. "Yes. These bastards took our loved ones; they should pay," Frank answered affirmatively.

"How much?" Cindy asked.

"Six million. Two million per life, and one other condition."

"What is the other condition?"

"That you swear the rest of your life to Hydra."

"Wait, what?!" Matt burst out in a shock-filled daze, no longer completely calm.

"I don't understand; why?" Frank asked, confused.

"I do, and yes," Cindy agreed without question.

"What?!" the two remaining cousins exclaimed.

She looked at her cousins. "Are you two really that stupid? We're going to be involved in the assassination of three superheros. We will have every single law enforcement agency on the planet after us. We're going to need protection, new identities, new lives, and they are probably the only ones that can do it."

The bald man looked at her with a little smirk. "I can see that you are the smart one, and you are correct. The United States, Canadian, and Mexican governments are planning to make trade agreements with Prince Thor and Loki's home planet of Asgard. With the cooperation of the United Nations, they want Loki to be the first Ambassador. When we kill them, you will have the whole world after you, and because you might start a war between the two planets, you will have nowhere safe to go."

"Holy fuck, _princes?"_ Matt could not believe his ears. He just wanted revenge, not a war; not to possibly kill more people. Terrorist organizations? He loved his work; he didn't hate America. Needless to say, he did not have a poker face.

"Matt, what the fuck? You'd better not be getting cold feet over this. Remember we said all of us are together; there's no going back." Frank angrily eyed him.

"It does not matter!" the bald man said loudly. "If you quit now, you will be executed."


End file.
